The subject matter described herein relates generally to non-destructive inspection of components and, more particularly, to robotic snakes used to perform non-destructive inspections.
Known aircraft generally require routine maintenance, including scheduled inspections and/or repair of various components. As a result, structural health monitoring, including scheduled and detailed inspections, including non-destructive inspections, of aircraft components is a growing field. At least some known structural health monitoring systems use a robotic snake to facilitate the inspection of components. However, because of various spatial restrictions physical and/or visual access to at least some components may be relatively difficult. For example, a fuel bladder and/or an insulation blanket may restrict access to the component to be inspected and cause drag and/or otherwise impede movement of the robotic snake. As such, the use of robotic snakes in such inspections may be limited.